Football news, transfer rumours and gossip - Reaction as Manchester City plunged into crisis

There’s plenty of talk about Manchester City’s Champions League ban, and it is becoming clearer that this is potentially a punishment with long-term ramifications. The Daily Mirror suggests that the Premier League will now move to punish City for the way they have reported their supposed revenue, and they could face a points deduction as a result of any transgressions.

Paper Round’s view: City have invited these problems because the manner in which they inflated their revenue has been an open secret for years. It is not clear why the emails leaked sparked an investigation, when the authorities should have been taking a more active role from the off. City could now face a wave of problems, as discussed below.

Following the two-year Champions League ban and the prospect of a Premier League points deduction, the Sun wonders who will be left at Manchester City at the start of the next campaign. Pep Guardiola’s future is already in doubt, but Claudio Bravo, Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling, Kevin De Bruyne, Sergio Aguero, Nicolas Otamendi, and David Silva could all be on the way out of the club.

Paper Round’s view: Whether Guardiola leaves is unclear, given City and his agent brother Per own a football club together. The chances of an appeal reducing the ban to just one season without Champions League football may turn the whole punishment into a damp squib. So maybe the anticipated exodus won't quite happen.

Another implication of Manchester City missing out on Champions League football is that the club could suffer financially. The Daily Mail writes that last season City earned £86 million from European football, meaning two years out might cost them £170 million on an operation that made just £10 million in profit last year. There is also a £25 million fee to accommodate too.

Paper Round’s view: The identification of Manchester City’s apparent deception is a huge problem for the club. Not only does the fine and lack of football prevent them from increasing their revenues, but the real figures they must now produce without ‘financial doping’ could leave them on the back foot for years in terms of meeting future Financial Fair Play regulations.

Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud has been offered a pre-contract by Italian side Lazio, according to the Daily Telegraph. The 33-year-old French international was close to leaving Chelsea in the winter but no move materialised, and he is free to enter negotiations with clubs outside England. However, he may choose to stay in London and the Premier League after interest from Tottenham.

Paper Round’s view: Giroud’s problems at Chelsea are that he did not feature for Frank Lampard as he is well down the pecking order. At Spurs, life might be marginally better if he is able to sit on the bench and replace Harry Kane towards the end of games, or to start less important matches. At Lazio though he would probably start more regularly, even if there was more upheaval in his life as a result.